India to resist BRICS de-dollarisation push
New Delhi does not want BRICS to be defined by an anti-dollar or anti-West identity, ahead of this week’s BRICS Foreign Ministers’ Meeting on May 14 and 15 at the Bharat Mandapam. Senior officials in India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) have privately underlined that India is not pursuing any de-dollarisation agenda within BRICS and is unwilling to allow the grouping to be framed primarily through the lens of resistance to the US or Western financial power.
“We will not let the West drive its agenda in the BRICS fora. India is not considering the de-dollarisation agenda because several signed trade arrangements continue to operate in dollar terms,” the official added.
While discussions around local currency trade and alternatives to Western-dominated financial systems continue to attract global attention, Indian officials are signalling that the country’s strategic and economic priorities remain rooted in pragmatism rather than confrontation.
Officials said India’s focus during its presidency remains on practical cooperation among emerging economies rather than ideological positioning against Western financial institutions.
New Delhi’s statement on de-dollarisation comes at a sensitive geopolitical moment, as BRICS expands in size and influence while global economic fragmentation deepens amid sanctions, supply-chain disruptions and intensifying US-China competition.
The issue has gained wider international attention after US President Donald Trump repeatedly warned BRICS countries against attempts to weaken the dominance of the dollar in global trade.
Originally founded as BRIC by Brazil, Russia, India and China in 2006, the grouping expanded into BRICS after South Africa joined in 2010.
The bloc has since widened significantly. Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the UAE became full members in 2024, while Indonesia joined in 2025.
BRICS accounts for nearly half of the world’s population, around 40 per cent of global GDP and over a quarter of global trade.
The grouping has increasingly emerged as an influential voice for the Global South on issues ranging from development financing and multilateral reforms to trade and climate negotiations.
At the same time, discussions around reducing dependence on the US dollar in cross-border transactions have periodically surfaced within BRICS amid rising geopolitical tensions and sanctions-related disruptions in global trade. Policy conversations within the grouping have also explored payment system interoperability, local currency trade and digital financial infrastructure.
Despite periodic discussions around alternative payment systems, BRICS has so far stopped short of proposing any formal common currency framework.
India, however, has maintained a cautious position on the issue. New Delhi’s approach has been pragmatic because global trade, energy imports and several strategic agreements continue to be heavily dollar-linked.
India to host key BRICS meet
New Delhi: India will host the BRICS Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in New Delhi on May 14-15 under its 2026 chairship.
